A Titan's Inspiration
by Anaxn
Summary: Music is often inspired by love. It is quite clear to Raven that it is the case with Jericho.


The quiet music that lilted out of Raven's room went mostly unnoticed. Everyone else in the tower was too busy or having too much fun to be on the living quarters hall; if one listened under the sotto guitar strumming, the sounds of a raucous game could be heard from several floors below. But behind the doors, two Titans were appreciating the audible art.  
It was the young man leaning against the bed frame who was making the music. He held an acoustic guitar in his lap, the wooden instrument carefully cradled in his arms as he plucked the strings into a peaceful melody reminiscent of the 1960's. The blond mess of sheep's curls on top of his head nodded along to the beat, eyes closed, but he did not sing along. The long scar down his bare throat displayed the reason why. His calloused fingers brushed gently over the wood almost lovingly, but the woman did not mind. She had had plenty of his touch earlier, so she could share with his beloved instrument.  
She was seated comfortably on the bed with a book, bare legs stretched out nearly to the end of the bed. Her ebony-blue hair splayed itself messily over her pillows and atop the loose black tank-top she wore. Her ocean-colored eyes were half-lidded in leisure, scanning the text at a slow pace. The smooth skin of her lips was curled up at the corners in a contented smile, fingers absent-mindedly rubbing the leather binding of her book. She sighed, sinking deeper into the pillows as the music lulled her down. Her eyes turned to him.

"Jericho..." The man turned and blinked at her, though the melody continued to drift through the space between them. "How do you come up with these songs?" The blond blushed slightly and the music ceased as his hands stumbled over themselves before finally signing what he wanted. _Old girlfriends._ A black eyebrow arched upwards and Raven's smile became more mischievous as she moved to sit upright. Joseph smiled sheepishly at his paramour.  
"You wrote songs for each of them?" The sorceress asked, laying the book on her lap. He nodded. _Love is one of the best of inspirations._ She stared into his soft green eyes intently, staring through him into her own self, searching for some kind of jealousy. She knew he had been with other women before her; she had even met a few of them. But there was no jealousy to be found, only the musician's soulful stare. A small smile was allowed to replace her serious visage.

"Play one for me." Jericho gaped for a moment and stared at his guitar in serious thought before his fingers reluctantly moved to the frets. Suddenly the music streamed from his hands in a rough and jazzy beat, the strings singing long after he had released them. The blond bent over the instrument in concentration as a wild and crazy beat spun out across the room like a drunken dancer. Raven listened attentively as it jerkily wound down into a simpler beat and eventually stopped all together. She glanced at him.  
"Let me guess; first met her stoned drunk at a party and helped her home." He nodded, giving a helpless little smile. _She asked for my number before she passed out, even after I told her I was mute._ The sorceress chuckled, turning herself around and lying on the rumpled sheets to be closer to the music. Her feet nestled themselves under the pillows. "Play me another one." Eyes wandering to the ceiling, the blond plucked a few notes at random before they resolved into a laid back melody. As he played, the black haired woman opened up her empathetic pathways slightly. Now the echo of waves sounded along with a few particular chords, sunshine trickled into the dark room and a general sense of well-being washed from each note. It didn't take long for the musician to notice and he glared at her playfully as the last strains of music drifted away, hands ever busy. _You know, I could just take you to the beach.  
_"That's not it; I just wanted to get a clearer picture of what your music's trying to convey." Raven kissed him on the forehead. "I bet she was a hippie, right?" His green eyes rolled, seemingly begging with the ceiling to save him from his lover's sharp intuition, and nodded an affirmative. Suddenly he sat up straight as though hit by inspiration and gestured for her to wait a moment. Joseph concentrated for a second, trying to remember the song, then the first melancholy notes trailed from his fingers. The somber song fell in arches from his closed eyes, into his hands, slid over his ankles and pooled in the center of her floor. The empath started to resonate her mind with the music when the mute's lips gently covered hers, surprising her. Her blue eyes widened to meet the emerald orbs of her lover, who pulled away to give her an admonishing grin, music still flowing from his lap. She chuckled lightly, understanding that he wanted her to do this the hard way. The notes were all natural, low muted strumming lending a gentleness to the sound. Jericho swayed back and forth to the slow rhythm up until the last note lilted away unfinished. She lay in silence for a moment, feeling out the meaning from the song, until she finally answered,  
"Academic struggling to balance her arts and work." He nodded again and Raven shook her head, long hair draping itself over her shoulders. "You always were a bleeding heart." There was silence as they sat there, her on the bed, him on the floor.

"Play the one you wrote for me." This provoked a reaction. He suddenly vaulted on top of her so quickly that the sorceress nearly blasted him on principle before remembering who he was and staying her hands. Joseph knelt over her, panic in his green eyes as his hands moved frantically in front of her face. Her expression must have shown that she was overwhelmed by the speed of his signing because he soon stopped and just leaned down and kissed her. The woman's shock faded upon the warmth of his body now pressing against hers and she responded in kind, arms wrapping around his well-shaped and bare torso. Ultimately he was the one to break the contact and sat on her hips, signing more slowly this time. _Please don't ask me that._ Raven's brow creased in confusion.  
"Why?" Jericho's eyes rolled in frustration at his inability to explain, hands speedily clenching and unclenching between signs as they desperately tried to explain his reasons. _It's not done! I don't want it to be done. I..._ He stopped signing and merely stared at her, desperate eyes begging her to understand what couldn't be said in words of either language. The sorceress aimed a level glare at him, only the long years of emotional training keeping her from becoming exasperated. Silence took over music's hold on the room, not even punctuated by the gregarious party downstairs. But stubbornness eventually won out over the inexplicable.

_I don't know if you'll like it. _The blond man signed guiltily. Her eyes widened only slightly and a wry smile threatened to plant itself on her face.  
"Is that all?" The empath asked blandly, which earned her an admonishing look from her lover. _To know yourself is a difficult thing._ He signed. Identity had always been a contested issue for the both of them and his warning struck deep.  
"Joey, look at me." The woman demanded calmly and sylvan green collided with stormy blue, the intensity of the stare reminding both of the time he had tried to possess her; an experience that had not ended well. There was no backing down, no breaking of the gaze that held the pair in rapture. The silence hung over the room like thin cloth for minutes as the couple reburied their consciousnesses deep within one another and reminded each other of intimate details. Finally the musician sighed noiselessly and got off of her to return to his seat by the bed. Lifting his guitar into his lap, the blond took a deep breath.

The first chords hit the low notes of the soul, climbing alone up the mountain of the heart. They sang of loneliness but determination, power but control. It was the story of a self-exiled loner and Raven recognized it immediately. Then the first bright cascade flew from Jericho's fingers, like a spring rain in the sun. It was joyous, it was smiling, it was like a shot of light though the clouds on a straight path. The lower notes solidly reasserted themselves in the music, but the higher tones rung above it every so often as he continued to play. Slowly the gap between low and high notes became less, the two intertwining into a comfortable medium that moved fluidly through the room. The music was open; she didn't know how she could tell, but the song was accepting and patient with all that came its way. She found herself growing still as it grew slowly softer and gentler, the sound washing her room in tenderness. The empath couldn't tell when it actually stopped; she eventually couldn't differentiate between the ringing in her ears and the last echoes of music. At some point though her arms locked themselves over Joey's chest and she buried her face in his mess of blond curls.  
"That was beautiful. Why did you stop?" She murmured, as though her voice would violate a sacred vow of silence. Her lover arched his neck, enjoying the feel of her warm breath on his neck. He turned just enough that she could see his hands and signed slowly. _Some things can only be said in silence._ Her pale fingers moved to gently stroke the scar on his neck. She caught sight of a small smirk on his face when he slyly added, _Also, it's not done.  
_"And it will never be finished." The sorceress felt the prophetic words wrap around her tongue just before she spoke them. "And your song shall continue to twine with mine." Before she could respond, Jericho smiled sheepishly. _Guess you can't fool the universe. Could you tell?  
_"I had an idea. Some of it sounded like you." Raven responded kindly. Limited precognition could either make or break a moment. Fortunately for her, it didn't often happen. The blond's eyes wandered as they gained a far away glaze. _I tried to keep myself out of your song, but I couldn't stop it. Pieces of me kept slipping in and even though it was about you, it just... happened. _The sorceress laid her pale hands over his, effectively silencing him.

"It's okay, Joey. Your song and mine can be the same."

(For those who are interested, the songs Jericho plays are based on: Tequila, Sunshine Superman, Norweigian Wood, Rhiannon/The Rain, the Park and Other Things/I Can Hear Music/In My Room as Raven's song


End file.
